ONE of the country’s leading Goth festivals is to partner with the Sophie Lancaster Foundation in a bid to spread the message about inclusion.

The Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival will be held in Whitby from Friday, October 28 to Sunday, October 30 and will feature live performances from The Loveless featuring Marc Almond, Fields of the Nephilim, Ghost Dance, and Balaam And The Angel.

Sophie Lancaster was attacked in a Bacup park because ‘she looked different’ and died in hospital 13 days later in 2007, she was 20. The Sophie Lancaster Foundation was established as a lasting legacy to a life cut short by violence and the charity works to promote tolerance and acceptance for others.

Festival director Richard Maides, said: “We are overwhelmed to confirm that one of our event partners will be the Sophie Lancaster Foundation. The joy of Tomorrow’s Ghost Festival is that our event appeals to an audience with a wonderfully broad taste in music, fashion and culture. This is to be celebrated.

“We believe our audience is one that is tolerant of the beliefs and appearance of all others in all walks of life and whatever path they may choose to take. We acknowledge that despite our audience having such tolerant and open minds, others sometimes do not. We are now in a privileged position to work with an organisation that at its core promotes the same values we have, which is to stamp out prejudice, hatred and intolerance everywhere.”

Sylvia Lancaster, chief executive of the Sophie Lancaster Foundation, and Sophie’s mum, said: “From the very beginning, the Goth community took us to their hearts and I will always be so very grateful. It was the Whitby Goths who organised a petition to recognise Sophie’s murder as a hate crime and this has underpinned everything we do as a charity.

“What is wonderful, is that Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival is being developed with a shared mission to stamp out prejudice, hatred and intolerance everywhere. I always love our visits to Whitby and I look forward to working with Richard and the festival team to develop an event that’s truly diverse and celebrates difference.”

The foundation will have a stall at the event to about their work and will be running educational workshops with local schools in the run up to the festival.